Blanket burst into flames at pensioner’s side

An electric blanket burst into flames at a house in Chobham while a woman was making breakfast downstairs

The result of a fire caused by an electric blanket in the bedroom of a home in Shrubbs Hill, Chobham

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An electric blanket burst into flames while a man in his eighties was sitting on a bed inches away at a Chobham home.

Richard Gibbons’ wife Shirley was making breakfast downstairs on Tuesday morning when she heard the commotion and rushed up the stairs of the detached house in Shrubbs Hill.

The couple tried to put blankets over the flames, closed the door of the room and called the fire service at 7.45am, and crews arrived within 10 minutes.

The bed, bedding and part of the carpet and floor were burnt to pieces. The room and en-suite bathroom will need major attention after what Mrs Gibbons described as ‘horrendous’ smoke damage, and some furniture and photos were left with a black coating.

The result of a fire caused by an electric blanket in the bedroom of a home in Shrubbs Hill, Chobham

But Mr Gibbons reasoned that it could have been worse as the couple came out unscathed.

“I was sitting on the edge of the bed and I suddenly realised there was a wall of fire on the other side of the bed,” he said.

“It was already bad, we had to shut the door on it.

“It was lucky it didn’t happen in the middle of the night.”

Mr Gibbons believes that the insulation of the wiring of the blanket, which is thought to have been at least 10 years old, perished and movement then triggered it into catching fire.

The amount of heat created by the blaze was shown by the soap dispenser in the bathroom melting, and three fire crews attended the scene at one point.

Breathing apparatus was worn by four firefighters who entered the room and in total 12 went up and down the stairs as they used a hose to put out the fire.

Watch commander Jason Patrick said: “It was caused by a fault with the electric blanket.

“We would advise people to change their electric blankets every 10 years.”

Mrs Gibbons said family members had helped to reduce the stress caused by the blaze, which also caused damage to the up-stairs landing and the stairs which would also need to be addressed.

“My granddaughter called me and told me that after hearing the news, she’s now got rid of her electric blanket,” she said.